Monday

Fall can be some of the best
fishing of the year. As the temperatures cool down to a more
comfortable level, most gamefish move back into the shallows and
begin to gorge in order to "stoke-up" for the long winter
period of inactivity. The baitfish and shad have all spawned,
producing schools of millions of young baitfish, which the gamefish
gorge on. If you know a few good fall fishing tips, you can have some
very memorable autumn outings.

A lot of aquatic vegetation,
especially the grasses, begin to die-off in fall. These hold huge
quantities of minnows, because the decaying vegetation attracts tons
of plankton, which the minnows feed on. Larger gamefish feed on the
minnows, so if you find large areas of scummy-looking dead grass,
there will most likely be gamefish nearby.

Another way to look for fish in
the fall is to watch for wheeling and diving flocks of birds, such
as gulls. They are probably targeting a large school of minnows or
shad near the surface. There will be gamefish underneath, savagely
attacking the school from below. Many times, you can actually see
the water boiling as if a school of piranhas were feeding. Cast
right into the melee, and hang on. When the school disperses, look
for another one. This is called Jump-Fishing.

In fall, wind becomes a more
important factor in locating fish. It is because the baitfish will
congregate on the downwind side of a body of water, so if there is a
south wind, the bait fish will stack-up on the north side, and
vice-verse. The gamefish will follow the baitfish.

In fall, fish feed at different
times, and not all fish will be feeding at the same time, so the
fishing may be in stages. Also, cold snaps will run fish back out to
deeper water, so on especially cool days, look for fish in deeper
water, near cover.

Here is a fall fishing tip that is
often overlooked. Fly anglers use a technique called "Matching
the Hatch", meaning they try to approximate the colors, shape
and size of whatever bug is currently on the water. You can do the
same thing with lures, by selecting ones that are similar to the
local baitfish as far as size, color and action. This will increase
your odds greatly, because the gamefish are used to these.

Autumn can be a very productive
time of year to fish, and even more so if you learn just a few basic
fall fishing tips.